


part of your world

by fruti2flutie



Series: wish upon a shining diamond [2]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Disney, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-14
Updated: 2016-06-14
Packaged: 2018-07-14 23:52:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,420
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7196567
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fruti2flutie/pseuds/fruti2flutie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Joshua’s usual spot is right at the coast, where the water washes up to his knees while he’s standing. To prevent the food from getting swept away by the tide he sits somewhere different: a flat rock closer to the base of a nearby cliff. Here, he can watch the water swirl below him as well as enjoy his sandwiches.</p>
            </blockquote>





	part of your world

**Author's Note:**

> is this a popular ship idk????? seriously has anyone ever done this b4 who am i ripping off of
> 
> (*the little mermaid)

Ocean watching is a fun pastime for Joshua. The water is cool in the summertime, the sand silky between his toes. The shore is one of his favorite parts of the beach, where he watches the tide hit the rocks and clouds roll across the blue sky. Sometimes he’ll bring his guitar, strum songs of the sea for the seagulls and hermit crabs, but it all depends on if he’s scolded for leaving the castle or not.

Today is a good day. Joshua had finished counseling over foreign affairs at noon, so he arrives at the beach early enough to have lunch. He’d asked the chefs to prepare him a small picnic basket, enough to satisfy him for the next few hours. (Some of it will be fed to the animals, but he doesn’t tell them that.) 

Joshua’s usual spot is right at the coast, where the water washes up to his knees while he’s standing. To prevent the food from getting swept away by the tide he sits somewhere different: a flat rock closer to the base of a nearby cliff. Here, he can watch the water swirl below him as well as enjoy his sandwiches. 

With his pants rolled up to his ankles, Joshua rests on the cool rock and feeds small bits of bread to the fish that have gathered around him. He imagines that he’s sharing a friendly lunch with them, although it sounds a little silly. As he takes a bite from his sandwich he sees someone far from the shore, bobbing in the water, which is jarring — the depth is over sixty feet, approximately.

“Excuse me!” shouts Joshua. “Are you okay out there? Do you need help getting back to land?” He has a rowboat, a small little thing, that can hold two people maximum that is docked a short walk from where he is currently. “I can come out there, if you’d like!”

The person must hear him, because in the next moment the swimmer’s head submerges under the water. Joshua scrambles to his feet in alarm, ready to dive into the ocean and go after them, but a breezy “Hello!” at the bottom of his rock stops him. 

“Hello...?” responds Joshua, unsure of whom he’s speaking to. He peers at the water and is greeted by a grinning face, with long lilac-colored hair wrapped in a ponytail — the person who’d been out in the deep end. “What brings you here?” he then asks. (Briefly, he wonders how they’d gotten here so rapidly.)

“Swimming! Can’t you see it’s a beautiful day out? What else is there to do?” The swimmer chuckles and rests his upper half on the rock, wiping his hair from his face. “Who are you? I’m Jeonghan.”

Joshua smiles. It’s not often someone doesn’t recognize him as the prince, so he finds it refreshing. “Joshua,” he introduces. “Nice to meet you!” 

Jeonghan laughs, and the sound resembles the whistling of birds or dolphins. “So, how about you? What’re you up to this lovely afternoon?”

“Lunch,” answers Joshua. “Listening to the waves is quite calming for me. I’ve lived next to the coast my entire life, yet I can never grow tired if it.”

Humming, Jeonghan nods in understanding. “I’ve lived in it my entire life, and I can tell you it’s not all that great.” He wrinkles his nose. “My hair permanently smells like saltwater and fish.”

“You must swim often, then?” guesses Joshua. “Your hair, by the way, is beautiful. The unique color is enchanting.”

Jeonghan’s cheeks redden. “I swim as much as you breathe air, I’m sure. And thank you, Joshua, you’re very kind.” 

Joshua is pleasantly surprised at the shy reaction and he’s driven to ask, “Would you like to join me? You must be hungry, swimming all the way here.” 

“I wouldn’t want to trouble you...” Jeonghan taps his lip with a finger, contemplating the proposition. “If you’re willing to offer, however, I don’t think I can refuse.”

Grinning happily, Joshua holds out a hand for Jeonghan to take. “I’ll help you up,okay?” 

At this, Jeonghan pales. He pulls away from the rock and begins, ever so slowly, to drift away. “I’ve got to stay in the water,” he declares firmly, biting his lip. “I’m sorry.”

Joshua prides himself in his ability to read others, and it’s easy to tell Jeonghan is uncomfortable. So, to calm the other’s uneasiness, he crouches down and wraps his arms around his knees, assuring softly, “That’s fine. You don’t have to get out of the water if you don’t want to.” Jeonghan relaxes some and reveals a small smile. “What kind of sandwich would you like? There’s a plethora of choices, but I personally recommend ham.”

Jeonghan tucks a falling strand of hair behind his ear, a graceful movement that makes Joshua stutter. “I’ll take ham!” he exclaims, and there’s a splash behind him — a fish swimming too close to the surface, most likely, with turquoise scales that glitter in the sunlight. He either doesn’t notice or doesn’t care as he happily munches on his sandwich. 

They talk for hours. Jeonghan tells of his many siblings, how they always steal his things and make him do all the chores. (“I’d rather sleep into a coma,” Jeonghan confesses, “than clean my sisters’ seaweed-stained bras.”) His father is strict, hardheaded, constantly worrying over Jeonghan’s unusual fascinations with the stars, boats, and... forks. He likes swimming in this area because there’s so much to see: the town, the grassy hills, the travelers walking barefoot. Simple things, Joshua notices, that Jeonghan holds dear.

Joshua reveals tidbits of himself, too, albeit vaguely to avoid prejudice of royalty. Many of his friends are smug and pompous individuals, but they have their minds in the right place. Church is a must for him, because of his upbringing and beliefs. He enjoys music a great deal, in all forms, being skilled with the piano and guitar. His parents have tried to set him up with several women, to settle down and start a family, but he knows that that path isn’t one meant for him.

“What do _you_ want to do?” Jeonghan asks, curious. 

Joshua hasn’t thought about it enough to give a complete answer. “Well,” he starts pensively. “To be honest, I think I would definitely like to watch the sunset with you.”

Jeonghan beams, “As do I.”

The sun’s rays are tinging the water in hues of red and orange, melting the day into night as the sun sinks below the horizon. Jeonghan’s frame, bathed in that holy light derived solely for angels, is dazzling. Starry-eyed, Joshua is overcome with the need to reach for Jeonghan’s hands, his shoulder, his face, but behind him a loud bark gives him a jolt. 

“Prince Jisoo! Your Highness!” That’s his advisor, along with Max, the royal family’s Sheepdog (who _really_ needs a visit to the barber shop). “You’re needed back at the castle! You’ve been out too long, and the King and Queen are starting to fret!”

Joshua sighs. He looks to the waters to bid his new companion goodbye, but Jeonghan is gone, only the simmering of sea foam and bubbles left behind where he’d been floating. Maybe he’d been scared off, which is a pity. Joshua quite enjoyed having someone to talk to, someone to be himself with. 

“ _Prince Jisoo_!”

Joshua packs his picnic basket and shouts, “Coming!” He stares out at the ocean, the glowing sunset, and sighs. Hopefully Jeonghan will come visit him tomorrow, too.

 

 

 

 

Underwater, Jeonghan doesn’t need to hold his breath, but he does anyway. He’s so nervous his tail is automatically curling towards him, his fin just barely trembling. Normally he’s graceful, nonchalant, composed — right now, he’s a mess.

When he’d heard another voice apart from Joshua’s and his own, Jeonghan instinctively dove to the depths of the sea to hide and avoid being revealed. No one knows he’s been watching the surface dwellers — especially Joshua, as of late — so often. He’d been confident when Joshua called out to him, but right now the thought of one of his sisters — or, Trident forbid, his _father_ — discovering his secret is blasphemous.

Yet Jeonghan’s heart feels like it’s been stung by a sea anemone, a shock that sends a wonderful shiver down his spine. The image of the boy sitting on the rocks is ingrained into his memory, and he’s glad. Spinning about and holding his hands to his cheeks, Jeonghan lets out the giddiest laugh. Hopefully he can see Joshua tomorrow, too. 


End file.
